StarCrossed
by danikat
Summary: Ren's little sister comes to stay with him. She ends up having a conversation with Sho online, only they don't know who the other is. Sho x OC. Ren x Kyoko. Rated T for language.
1. Chapter 1

**Tada! New story about Ren's little sister and Sho! Cute! No cat included yet, but may bring one in later. According to the Random Baby Name Generator, her name is Japanese in origin, but to me it seems American. So it's sort of a compromise and it goes with my catness.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat!**

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Ren was at the airport waiting for his little sister's plane to arrive before he had to be at his next drama shoot. It was aggravating that his parents where allowing her to come. She would probably just blow his cover story. He sighed. It had been almost five years since he had last seen her. He had missed so much of her life as she was growing up. He really needed to make it up to her, but why now? He was at the height of his career. Ren shook his head and looked at his watch again. Her plane was running a little late and he was getting worried. He had told everyone at work that she was his cousin, so no one would ask her too many questions about him. Yashiro was waiting down at the luggage carrier to get her stuff and put it in the car. **(AN: I don't really know how airports work. Sorry!)**

There she was, walking in his general direction, looking around for him. "Tora, over here!" He waved and she smiled and started towards him. She was nothing like what he remembered, but he knew that from the picture his parents had sent of her months ago to make sure he recognized her at the airport. Instead of the little girl he remembered, here was a full-grown woman. Her hair had darkened from it's childhood almost white blond to ash blond. Her eyes were still a blue that nearly matched his own. Now she was standing next to him, he could tell she was only a few inches shorter than him. "Hey, Onii-chan."

"H-hey," Ren stammered. He smiled awkwardly. He shrugged and started to lead her to the car, asking, "How was your flight?" "It was alright. Not too bad." "Oh," Ren replied, trying to come up with something else to ask. "How were you doing in school?" "Good. Biology and Algebra II were horrible, but I was doing ok. Do you know what I'll have to take here?" "Ah," Ren stammered, "No. Not really." She shrugged and kept walking next to him. He reached the car where Yashiro was waiting for them. "Oh, um, Tora, this is Yashiro. He's my friend and manager. Yashiro, this is Tora." Tora smiled at Yashiro and offered her hand, which Yashiro shook. Ren opened the door to the back of the car and Tora got in. Yashiro got in the front as Ren went around the car and got in the driver's seat.

The car was filled with an awkward silence, broken occasionally by Ren asking questions and Tora politely answering. That was until Ren decided to try to act the overprotective brother. "So, are you dating anyone?" "No." Ren looked at her in the rear view mirror. She was watching the passing cars, as if it was the most interesting pass-time in the world. "Really?" "Yeah." She was starting to get annoyed with the subject. "You know it's ok with me if you are." "Yeah," she replied angrily, "but I'm not." Yashiro picked up on the fact she didn't want to continue the discussion and tried to signal to Ren, but he kept going. "Seriously, when I was your age I had already had five girlfriends. It really is ok to talk to me about your relationship with your boyfriend." "I don't have a boyfriend. Never had one." She was now glaring at him in the rear view mirror.

Yashiro tried to disappear into his seat. He did not want to be in the car for this conversation. "You know," Tora said suddenly, "I know you need to get to some drama shoot or another, so how about you let me out here and I'll meet up with you later." "Do you have my cell phone number and address?" "Yeah," she said pulling a notebook out of her bag that was sitting next to her, "Cell number: 245-908-6274. Address: Starburst Apartments at 542 Spring Road, room number 389." "Good. You sure you'll be alright? Call me if you need me." "Yeah, I'm sure I'll be fine." Under her breath she said, "Better than I was in here, anyway." Ren pulled over and Tora got out taking the bag with her. She waved over her shoulder, not looking back.

Tora stopped in front of the first Starbucks she found. She didn't like coffee, but they usually had wireless Internet. **(AN: I think.)** She ordered a doughnut, sat down at a table, and pulled her laptop out of her bag. She smiled as she booted it up. She loved her laptop. It wasn't the newest or the fastest, but it was durable and ran. She logged on to the Internet after the computer was fully running. She went over to Google and searched 'Ren Anti-fan Chatrooms'. She read through the descriptions of the first few and clicked on one. She surfed around looking at what was being discussed and decided to join in.

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KittehPrincess (Tora): Hey. What's up?  
RenHater1 (Random Dude 1): We're discussing how fake Ren's smile is.  
Madboyfriend (Random Dude 2): Yeah, he totally has a fake smile. Especially when on talk shows when you can tell he's mad or something.  
Rockstar (Sho): He isn't even that good at fake smiles.  
KittehPrincess: I totally understand. Can you believe that he does that fake smile all the time?  
Madboyfriend: Yeah, like it's painted on his face.  
RenHater1: I still totally think he's an alien out to eat all the women in the world.  
KittehPrincess: o.O  
Rockstar: Yeah, he's always like that. RenHater1, no one cares about your world domination theory.  
RenHater1: Just because you can't appreciate it doesn't mean it isn't true.  
Madboyfriend: Dude. Just face it. It isn't happening.  
RenHater1: It could happen.  
KittehPrincess: I don't think so, dude. Sorry.  
Rockstar: Yeah, man.  
RenHater1: Oh, bother. Mom says I have to get off and come to supper now. Talk to you guys later.  
Madboyfriend: Yeah, later dudes. Time for me to do my homework.  
Rockstar: Hey, KittehPrincess, do you want to move this conversation to MSN?  
KittehPrincess: Yeah, sure.

-

Tora had spent the last two hours in the Starbucks talking on MSN to 'Rockstar'. She thought he was funny and really nice. He told her he really did dream of becoming the number one most desirable male in entertainment. She told him to go for it. He seemed more real to her than her brother and felt he should win over more fans. In turn, she had told him she had dreams to become a world famous artist and he had seemed supportive of her. They had talked until she really trusted and liked him. She was sad to have to say that she had to leave and promised to talk to him later.

Sho was siting in the recreation area of the office for hours on his laptop and his manager was getting worried. He normally was more professional about his work. He had been laughing and nodding at the screen off and on for the last hour and now he seemed sad. He closed what he had been on and sighed staring off into space. He had enjoyed talking to 'KittehPrincess'. She was nice, and like him had an interest in art. She would probably make a good artist. He sighed again. He wished he could meet her. She was really nice, but probably one of those crazy fans. Though what bothered him was, not once did he mention himself to her to see her reaction on the subject. He'd ask her later. For now, it was nice to think she might be his friend.

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**How is that for a first chapter? I don't know if American computers are compatible with Internet in Japan or Japanese in general. If this address, phone number or any of the user names are real, sorry, I didn't know or bother to check. Sorry if the online messages are hard to understand. Do you think Tora should have a cat?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks to all who have reviewed! I'm changing the rating to T because I want to be able to use cursing and to mention songs that curse. Unless specifically stated, listening to the songs mentioned are not necessary to the enjoyment of the chapter. Even then, you probably would not need to listen to them.  
I've looked through most of the manga and I can't find how old Kyoko or Ren are at any point. Not even on their birthdays. So I'm going to have to ignore Tora's exact age too. She is about the same age as Kyoko.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat or any songs mentioned.

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**Tora arrived at Ren's apartment before Ren returned so she decided to fix dinner. She was humming away with her headphones on when Ren entered the apartment. He spotted her and jokingly said, "I hope you didn't learn to cook from mom. Tora took her headphones off and turned around. "Of course not. I don't have a death wish." Ren laughed. "So did dad teach you?" She shook her head. "No, I took home economics and watched the Food Network." Ren laughed again and shook his head. "So what have you been up to all afternoon?" Tora smiled and turned around to resume cooking. "Not much. Hung out at a Starbucks so I could get online. That's about it." "Did you get a cab home?" Ren asked looking worried. "No, I walked. It was only a few blocks." Ren sighed. He knew he wouldn't win an argument on the subject so he shrugged it off and waited for her to finish fixing dinner.

The next day, Ren took Tora with him to work. He knew she had nothing better to do at his apartment and thought she would be bored on her own. Tora was not enthused, but Ren figured she would like it better than sitting alone in an apartment. She put her headphones on and ignored him after he picked up Yashiro, and continued to ignore him once they got to the set for his first drama for the day. He shook his head and sighed. She would get over it eventually. She finally took her headphones off as he headed for the set. She watched the performance with limited interest and ignored it whenever she thought Ren was watching her.

She wouldn't admit it to him, but she kind of liked watching a movie or drama being made. Tora, like her brother, had been exposed to the entertainment field as a child by her parents. Unlike her brother, she had no intentions of following in their footsteps and entering the entertainment field. While Tora was busy making sure Ren didn't notice her interest in the proceedings, she forgot to watch Yashiro. He noticed how she watched the actors in action and pretended not to care when Ren was checking on her. He smiled and chuckled to himself. It seemed to him like a typical relationship between close relatives like them. He shook his head. Ren sure had his hands full taking care of her.

When Ren, Yashiro, and Tora arrived on the set of Dark Moon, Kyoko ran over immediately to talk to Ren. She was babbling away about how worried she was about something at the office, when she finally noticed Tora standing next to Yashiro. She started bowing and apologizing, startling Tora. Ren stopped her and said, "This is my cousin, Tora. She's going to be staying with me for a while. Tora, this is Mogami Kyoko. She is one of my co-workers at LME." Tora smiled at Kyoko and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for all your hard work keeping my cousin out of trouble." Kyoko nodded looking confused but shrugged it off. She turned to Ren and asked, "Is it alright if I come over this afternoon and fix you and your cousin dinner? I really want to make sure you both are eating well. Especially with your eating habits, Ren."

Ren blushed and Tora laughed. She turned to Kyoko and said, "Sure you can come over and fix him something. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine on my own. I'm sure you two can some up with something to talk about without me." Kyoko nodded but looked doubtfully at Ren who was frowning slightly at Tora. He sighed and nodded at Kyoko before heading to the costume department. Kyoko ran off to her makeup artists so she could finish getting her scar put on. Tora looked around for a chair to sit in but Yashiro cornered her. "You know, Ren really does care for you and wants to spend time with you. You shouldn't keep trying to push him away." Tora shrugged and replied, "I don't see why not. It's what he did to me for the last few years." Yashiro rolled his eyes. "Ren has been working hard as a celebrity. He didn't have time to visit you. You should understand that." "I understand it would have been difficult to visit, but a phone call at least once would have been nice. An e-mail or even a letter would have been nice. I hadn't even heard he wasn't dead on the side of the street until my parents told me where he was a year ago. I didn't know what had happened to him."

Yashiro cringed and let her go sit on a chair in the corner. He knew Ren had been busy, but she was right. It was a little over the top for her to have not heard from him in five years. He wondered why she hadn't tried to look him up online and found out he was an actor in Japan, but he shrugged it off. She probably hadn't looked at any reports in Japan even if he did have the same name. She had been expecting something about him in American reports. He couldn't even imagine how she must have felt not knowing if he was even alive or not. He wondered why her parents hadn't told her, though. It was odd, but then again, so where Ren and Tora. With that thought, Yashiro pushed away the whole conversation and focused on the paper work he needed to fill out for that night.

Tora and Kyoko rode in the back of Ren's car on the way back to his apartment. Tora had her headphones on and Kyoko seemed to nervous to try to start a conversation with Ren. As soon as Ren parked, Tora opened her door and started to walk away. "Tora," Ren almost shouted, quickly opening the door for Kyoko. "Call me if you need me. Don't talk to strangers and don't...," but at that point Tora was out of shouting range. Ren sighed and motioned for Kyoko to follow him up to his apartment.

Ren and Kyoko were sitting eating the dinner that Kyoko had made in an awkward silence. Kyoko nervously tried to break the silence by asking, "Um, Ren, how old is your cousin?" "She's the same age you are. Her birthday is in October." "Oh," Kyoko said. "Ren, do you and Tora fight a lot." "I try not to fight with her, but..." Kyoko nodded, "She doesn't listen to you. It seems to me like she doesn't respect you." Ren nodded, "It's my own fault. We were really close when we were little, but we sort of fell apart after I became a celebrity. I didn't talk to her or much of anyone outside of work during that time." Kyoko nodded sympathetically, and then, struck with an idea, asked, "Do you like Tora as more than your cousin? Like a girlfriend?" Ren blushed and shook his head violently, "No. No, I think of her like my little sister. Why would you ask?" Kyoko gave him a mischievous look and replied, "I heard that you are in love with a girl my age and you're really worried that you'll look like a pedophile if you tell her." Ren blushed some more. This was not what he wanted to hear from the girl he was in love with.

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Tora had found a ramen shop a few blocks from Ren's apartment that had Wi-fi and stopped there for dinner. She had been carrying her laptop around but hadn't bothered taking it out while she was being drug around to different drama sets. While she was eating, she looked to see if her friend 'Rockstar' was on. She smiled as she saw that he was on and messaged him to see if he was free to talk.

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KittehPrincess: Hey. What's up?  
Rockstar: Wow. You caught me just as I got on.  
KittehPrincess: Really? Cool. So...  
Rockstar: Oh, right. Not much. A record agency just agreed to take some of my songs.  
KittehPrincess: That's so cool. Congrats.  
Rockstar: Thanks. So what's up with you?  
KittehPrincess: *rolls eyes* I was forced to follow my brother around all day at work.  
Rockstar: Ouch. Was it that boring?  
KittehPrincess: Not really, but still annoying.  
Rockstar: Damn. Bad luck.  
KittehPrincess: Yeah. I'm sort of glad school doesn't start for a few more weeks, anyway.  
Rockstar: You know where you're going yet?  
KittehPrincess: Nope. Not yet.  
Rockstar: Oh well. Oh yeah, I was going to ask you something. Do you mind answering?  
KittehPrincess: Depends on what it is. Nothing too personal is it?  
Rockstar: No. I just wanted to know if you listen to Japanese music.  
KittehPrincess: No, not unless it's from an anime or something.  
Rockstar: So, you've never heard of Sho Fuwa, have you?  
KittehPrincess: No, sorry. Is he your favorite musician?  
Rockstar: Sort of. Hey, how about we take turns asking each other questions.  
KittehPrincess: As long as it isn't to personal, sure.  
Rockstar: Who is your favorite music artist?  
KittehPrincess: Hmm, I'd have to say Basshunter. What's your favorite color?  
Rockstar: Red. What's your favorite song? (Doesn't have to be by same artist.)  
KittehPrincess: Rescue Me by Zebrahead. Who is your favorite music artist?  
Rockstar: Trapt. They're awesome. What are you listening to now?  
KittehPrincess: Jurassic Park by Basshunter. What is your favorite song?  
Rockstar: Prisoner by Sho Fuwa. What is your favorite animal?

-

Tora stayed at the ramen shop talking with 'Rockstar' until it was closing time. She really enjoyed talking with him and she thought he liked talking to her, too. They had spent most of the time asking and answering questions. She was really glad she had met him online. They had a lot of interests in common. She was about a block from Ren's apartment building when Ren called her on her cellphone. He sounded panicky and frantic so she assured him that she was on the way. She sighed to herself as she finally got him to hang up. He was really cute in an annoying way.

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Sho sighed as he closed his computer. 'KittehPrincess' was starting to feel like a real friend to him. He missed her when she was off. He sighed again and spun around in his swivel chair. It was really a disappointment that she had never heard of him, though. Meanwhile, Shoko was watching him worriedly. He was spending more and more time on his computer and he wasn't talking about what he was doing. He almost never kept secrets from her.

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**Poor Sho. He barely even gets a paragraph in the whole chapter. I can't tell if I'm keeping Tora's personality constant when she is with Ren or not. It's supposed to be totally different when she is talking to Sho, but I can't help but think I've changed it from the first chapter.  
Hopefully, the online chat isn't too confusing. Yes, I know that Tora and Sho like my favorite artists, but I didn't know who else they would like.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Great, now my brother's new computer is acting up. Bother. Well, now for my boredom to manifest itself as a new chapter.  
Thanks to all who reviewed. Special thanks to Kiyoka Kurosawa for informing me of Ren and Kyoko's ages.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat or anything else that really exists.

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Kyoko and Tora were sitting in the back of Ren's car waiting while Yashiro went into the office to drop of reports. Ren had stepped out of the car to talk one of his fellow actors. Tora was fiddling with her mp3 player and sighed as its battery died. She pulled her headphones off and turned to look at Kyoko. "So, have you and Ren known each other very long?" Kyoko started but shook her head. "No. I've only known him for a few months." Tora raised her eyebrows. "Yet, you come over to his house and offer to cook without really thinking about it." Kyoko blushed and looked at her hands. "Yeah," she said quietly, "I took care of him a while ago when he was sick. He really helps me out with my acting, too." Tora nodded, a little worried that she hadn't heard that he had been sick. _But since when has he been real open about what he's been up to anyway, _she thought, shrugging her worries off.

"So your relationship is totally business? Nothing else?" Kyoko blushed more and stared at Tora. Why were people suggesting Ren liked her? It was obvious he didn't like her. He disliked her to the point he bullied her. "Of course. What else would it be?" Tora stared at her. Did she really not know that there was any other form of relationship? Or did she just not know that Ren would go out with any girl who asked him just to be polite? _Either way,_ Tora thought smiling, _Ren probably is dumb enough to fall head over heals for her. _"Oh, nothing," Tora said smiling at her. Just then Ren opened the driver's door and stuck his head in. "Yashiro called down to say he has to stay longer and to go on ahead of him. Mogami-san, do you need to go somewhere else for work or to go home?" "I've got to get back to the Daruma-ya. They'll be waiting up for me." Ren nodded and settled into his seat.

Ren and Tora where sitting in the car in silence after dropping Kyoko off. Ren nervously drummed his fingers on the steering wheel while Tora looked out the window with a bored expression on her face. "Hey, Ren," Tora said not looking at him. Ren looked at her in the rear-view mirror. "Yeah?" "Kyoko-chan seems like a nice girl, doesn't she." "Yeah," Rem responded hesitantly. Tora turned to stare at him in the rear-view mirror. "Do you like her? As more than a co-worker?" Ren blushed and looked away. Tora nodded. That was probably the best answer she was going to get from him. "Good for you. Try not to hurt her. Like I said, she's nice. She doesn't deserve the usual treatment you give girls." Ren blushed so much he missed the turn and had to turn around.

Ren was sitting idlely on the couch as Tora fixed them dinner. He thought about what she had said in the car. Tora was right. Kyoko didn't deserve to be stuck with someone like him, especially after what she had gone through before. He didn't need to push his feelings onto her and then have to fail to meet her expectations. He sighed as Tora came in with the food. She gave him a sideways look as she set it down. Guessing what he was thinking and rolled her eyes. "I said that she didn't need your usual standoffish attitude to dating, not for you to keep from liking her completely." She sighed and muttered, "Hopeless," under her breath. Ren heard and straightened up. "What do you mean hopeless? I never said I was in love with her anyway!" "Oh, really," Tora said sarcastically, "You just let her come cook for you and act as her taxi driver just because you're that nice a guy." She snorted and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. Don't think I don't know that look you give her sometimes when she's not looking. Even Yashiro-san notices." Ren winced, knowing she was right. Yashiro never let it go either. "Yeah, well what about you? You said you didn't have a boyfriend yet you are always talking to someone on your computer!"

"That's none of your business," Tora said with a sniff, begining to eat her dinner with interest. "Yeah, well how do I know my little sister isn't chatting with some old pedophile?" Tora glared up at him. "Yeah? Well, at least I wouldn't be the old pedophile." Ren glared back at her. "That's crossing the line." "Yeah? So what? You started it." "No, you started it." "No, I didn't. You did," Tora replied standing up and glaring at her brother. "No, I didn't," Ren said standing as well. "Yes, you did." "No, I didn't!" "Yes, you did!" "No, I didn't!" "Yeah, you did!" "Whatever! I don't care," Ren shouted, throwing his hands in the air. Tora glared at him before stomping off to her room. Ren sat down with a sigh. She was just so aggravating sometimes. Even if he did think she was right.

Tora sat down furiously on her bed. It wasn't her fault her brother had accused her friend of being a pedophile. _Well, _Tora thought guiltily, _maybe it was my fault._ She sighed and opened up her laptop. She fiddled with the cords on her mp3 player, hooking it up to recharge, as the computer booted up. She hummed 'Closer to Our Graves' as she logged on. Her heart gave a pleasant jump as she saw 'Rockstar' was on. She smiled nervously and waited to see if he would start the conversation. She was telling her brother the truth when she said they weren't dating. They hadn't even told each other their real names. Their relationship was really a flimsy friendship, just waiting for something to break it. She sighed with relief as he opened the conversation.

-

Rockstar: Hey. What's up?  
KittehPrincess: Not much. I just had a fight with my brother.  
Rockstar: Bummer. Was it bad?  
KittehPrincess: Not any worse than usual. So, what's up with you?  
Rockstar: I was stuck in trafic all afternoon. Had to sit there for an hour.  
KittehPrincess: Damn, that sucks. What are you doing?  
Rockstar: Other than talking to you? I'm writing a new song.  
KittehPrincess: That's so cool! I'm sort of stuck on my art.  
Rockstar: Keep at it. I'm sure you'll work through it.  
KittehPrincess: Thanks. What do you do when you're stuck for something for a song?  
Rockstar: Hm...That's hard. I'm sure my coolness would never allow for such a problem.  
KittehPrincess: Lol. No, seriously. What do you do?  
Rockstar: I just get inspiration from what's going on around me. Just go with the flow.  
KittehPrincess: Thanks. I'll try that. Normally, I just draw random stuff till something comes to me.  
Rockstar: That works too, sometimes. I just write random lines till something clicks.

-

Sho lay on his stomach on his bed for hours. He typed away, revealing more of himself to this stranger who made his heart do odd things. He told her things that no one other than Kyoko had ever known about him. He thought that he should logically be worried that she might do something with the information if she found out who he was. He just couldn't bring himself to worry about it. 'KittehPrincess' was just so easy to talk to. He sighed, resignedly as she said she had to go. He wished he could do more to help her when she had problems with her art and her brother. Being an only child, he had no experience with the brother issue. He didn't ever really think about his inspiration for his songs much either, so he couldn't help her much. Sho felt sad and helpless in a way he hadn't since he had seen Kyoko cry about her mother. There just wasn't much he could do except try to be there for her.

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**Hopefully, you like it. Personally, I like the normal brother-sister fight. It's funny.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks to all who have reviewed. Hope you like the new chapter! Oh, yeah. Beware the screaming fangirls. They're scary.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat or anything else! Except maybe Tora and the plot for this story.

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**Tora awoke to the sound of the alarm clock's buzzer. Groaning she turned it off and hid her head under the pillows. Today was supposed to be the first day at her new school and her brother still hadn't said what she was taking. Ren knocked on her door and said something, but underneath the pillows Tora couldn't make out what he said. "Huh," she groaned at the door, throwing the pillow. Ren had chosen to open the door at that moment and caught the pillow in the face. Seeing this, Tora dissolved into giggles. Ren rolled his eyes at her. "Hurry up and get dressed. We need to pick up Mogami-san." Tora raised an eyebrow questioningly at this statement causing Ren to blush. "She goes to the same school you will be going to, so I thought I could give her a ride." Tora rolled her eyes at him and rolled off the bed. She stood up and stretched while Ren walked off to fix something for breakfast.

Tora shuffled out of her room a few minutes later dressed in her new school uniform. She fidgeted with it growling, "Why do I have to wear this dumb thing? It's annoying!" "All the students have to wear that. That's why," Ren explained patiently. "That doesn't make it less dumb," Tora complained, falling into a chair at the table. Ren sighed and sat as well. They ate in silence for a while until Tora thought of something that had been bothering her. "Why am I going to a school for actors anyway?" "Because," Ren said, not looking up from his food, "I asked the President to look into a school for you. Since he had gotten Mogami-san into this one, he thought it would be ok for you to go there too. Also, they allowed you to not have your last name listed so you won't be asked too many questions."

Tora thought about it for a bit. It was true that growing up, she had to put up with a lot of people asking about her father. They also tried to be her 'friend' just to say they knew the daughter of Kuu Hizuri. After a while, it was more than a little obnoxious. Some people had even tried to follow her home, which was just plain weird. She sighed. "Fine. Whatever." She stood up and took the dirty dishes to the kitchen and washed them quickly. She and Ren then left for the car.

Ren's car was once again headed for the school after stopping to pick up Kyoko. The car was quiet as Tora stared absently at the passing cars and Kyoko fidgeted uncomfortably. They both looked up as the car came to a stop outside the school building. "Mogami-san, do you mind showing Tora to the office? I would, but it would probably cause a riot." Kyoko nodded furiously. "Of course, Tsuruga-san!" Tora rolled her eyes at Kyoko's enthusiasm, but smiled softly anyway. Tora and Kyoko got out of the car and Kyoko waved vigorously at the car as it pulled away. "Ok," Kyoko said as she turned to face Tora, "The office is this way." Kyoko started towards the building and Tora followed.

"This door on the right is the music room," the office assistant rambled as he and Tora walked from the office to the class Tora was supposed to be in. "This one on the left here is the art room. This one across from it is Mr. Murasaki's advanced math. You're in here." Tora nodded and entered the room. The man at the front of the room stopped talking and looked over at her. He nodded and turned to address the class. "This is Tora. She's going to be joining us now." Several of the students rolled their eyes at the obvious statement. "She's here from America, so try not to corrupt her mind too much." This comment gathered several snickers and some elbow jabs between a few of the boys. Tora decided she liked this teacher. He had an odd sense of humor, but he still managed to reach everyone with his jokes. Looking around, she saw that Kyoko wasn't in her class. She was a little disappointed, but she had another six classes she could share with the other girl.

It was lunch and she had gone through science and history following math, and she still hadn't seen Kyoko. Scanning the cafeteria, she didn't see her friend but she spotted one of the boys from her history class waving at her. "Hey," he said as she approached, "You can sit here. I didn't get to introduce my self earlier, but my name is Sora. It's nice to meet you." Tora smiled and nodded. "Nice to meet you, too." Sora shook her hand before waving over another of his friends. Tora sat next to Sora as the table filled up. Once everyone was seated, Sora preceded to introduce Tora to his friends. "This is Takeshi, Shiki, Sasuke, and Ichigo," he said pointing to each respectively. They waved as he said their names and Tora nodded in acknowledgment to each as they were introduced. "Guys, this is Tora," he said pointing at her and she waved at them. She recognized most of them from her classes. They all nodded at her and smiled.

The boys, Takeshi, Sasuke, and Sora, got into an argument almost immediately about which Final Fantasy character could beat who. Tora listened for a while but Shiki rolled her eyes at them. "Hey, Tora," Shiki said, catching Tora's attention, "Do you know any of the Japanese music artists or actors?" "Not really," Tora said, shaking her head, "I've heard of Ren Tsuruga and Sho Fuwa, but I've never seen anything either of them have done." Ichigo squealed. "Oh, I just love Ren-san. He's so cool." "No way," Shiki responded, "Sho is much cooler. What do you think Tora?" Tora shifted uncomfortably. "Like I said, I've never seen either of them, just heard of them. Sho sounds cooler, though." Ichigo squealed again and nodded vigorously. "He is. He's just so dreamy. You should come with me to the party Saturday. It's at my company and Sho might be there, too." Shiki looked at Ichigo in surprise. "You never told me you were in the same company as Sho." Ichigo rolled her eyes. "Duh, you never asked." "So," Shiki asked, "Can I come too?" "Sure," Ichigo said, nodding, "So, Tora. Are you coming?" Tora shrugged. "Sure, I guess so." Shiki and Ichigo squealed. "This is going to be such fun," Ichigo said enthusiastically.

It was the last period of the day, Computers, and Tora was officially bored. Totally bored. Bored with a capital, bold B. Sighing, she logged into her MSN. It wasn't like the teacher cared or would even notice. She was checking her e-mails when she got a message from 'Rockstar'. _Are you on?_ She smiled and chuckled softly. _Yeah, or you wouldn't have messaged me._ She surfed through the e-mails from her parents while she waited for his answer. _Well, you can never be too sure. Some people just leave themselves on. _She rolled her eyes at the screen. _Yeah, but I don't. _His response came almost instantly. _True. So what are you doing on? Aren't you at school? _She snorted. _And that's going to stop me? Besides, I was bored. _She went back to emptying her inbox while waiting on his response. _Well, I am so glad that I was able to keep your boredom at bay for even a few moments. _Tora giggled. _Beware the sarcasm. It may bite. _She startled as the bell rang and wrote a him a quick note before logging off. _Gotta go. See you soon.

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_**Hope you liked it. Really hope you could understand the different messages. So, can you guess what's coming next? Ha! Bet you can't!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm officially bored. And now I'm trying to remember what that dumb computer project we had to do that had to do with that song 'We Didn't Start The Fire' was. Can't ever come up with anything I try to remember. *sigh* Whatever.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat! Still not sure that I own Tora or this plot. Maybe I do...*shrugs* Who knows...  


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**The week passed quickly for Tora because she looked forward to going out with her friends to the party. It was the weekend before she knew it, but unfortunately that meant she had to go to work with Ren. She sighed in the back of the car as Ren pulled up to Yashiro's place. She glared at the back of Ren's head while he looked out the window. _Dumb brothers with their dumb ideas, _she thought as she rolled her eyes at him. _I could be at the apartment talking with 'Rockstar'. But No! I've got to go sit in the corner at some filming set! _She groaned and hit her head on the door. _At least I get to go to the party tonight while he's working._

She smiled at the thought of her new friends. Ichigo and Shiki were so worked up at the idea of going to the party. They had all agreed to meet there at 7 and that they would stick together the whole time. Not that Tora thought that would really work, but it was the thought that counted. Maybe she would get to see this 'great Sho Fuwa' that her friends kept talking about. She hadn't told 'Rockstar' that she was going to the party. It would probably make him sad to think that she might meet his idol. _Maybe I should have told him,_ she thought guiltily, _he might be going too. It could have been our chance to meet each other in real life._ She sighed again. It was too late to try to tell him now. Her laptop was at home and she would be out with her brother all day.

Tora was broken from her thoughts at Ren's tapping. Looking at the clock, she saw that they had been sitting there for almost ten minutes. Where was Yashiro? They were going to be late if he didn't show up soon. Looking around, Tora spotted him running towards the car. Except that he was coming from the wrong direction and was being chased by a bunch of dogs. Alarmed, Tora pointed him out to Ren. "What the Hell," Ren asked and got out the car. "Ren! Open the other door so I can jump in and get away from these crazy creatures," Yashiro shouted at him. Ren nodded and ran around the car to do as he said. Yashiro reached the car just as Ren climbed into his seat and shut the door. Yashiro jumped in and shut the door as the first dog rammed into the car.

"What did you do," Ren asked as he turned the car on. "I-I may ah have upset t-this dude d-down the st-street," Yashiro panted, "He s-said that I w-was g-going to p-pay for st-stealing his little g-girl's h-heart." "Huh?" Ren looked at him confused. "You did what?" "I don't know! That's just what he said! I don't know if it's true even," Yashiro shouted at Ren. "That just odd," Ren said shaking his head, "So what does this have to do with your fuzzy friends?" "He sicked his dogs on me then a bunch more joined in," Yashiro explained as he dusted himself off. "That's funny," Tora said giggling from the back seat. "Oh yeah," Yashiro said, turning around to face her, "You try getting chased by a pack of dogs for half an hour and see how funny it is then!" Tora just laughed harder. "Try being chased by a pack of fan girls for ten blocks and see how funny that is. They're infinitely scarier than dogs," Ren said seriously. Tora just laughed at the both of them.

Tora was sitting in the corner of the set with Yashiro trying to look over his shoulder at his magazine. She had a suspicion it was a Ren Fan magazine but she couldn't see it well enough to tell. Every time she got in a position so she could see it clearly, Yashiro moved. She moved a bit to the left and he shifted the magazine to his right side, she shifted to the right and he moved the magazine to his left side. She finally just stood up to look over his head and Yashiro closed the magazine and looked to where Ren was approaching them. Tora sighed and sat back down.

"Tora, this is the director," Ren said, pointing to the man walking up behind him. "Hi," Tora said unenthusiastically. "Hey, Tora," the director said excitedly, "I was wondering if you would consider doing a small part in the movie. We need someone to play Ren's sister now that the actress that was going to do the part dropped out. We don't need to record the video for that section for a few more weeks, but I was wondering if you would do it." Tora stared at him sceptically. "Ren didn't put you up to this did he?" The director shook his head vehemently. "No. Honestly, I thought you would be perfect for the part when Ren first brought you to the set, but we still had the actress who had been picked for the job. It wasn't until yesterday that we got the news that she had dropped the part. So will you do it?" Tora sighed. "I guess so. I don't have to get my name in the credits, do I?" The director looked at her puzzled. "No, you don't have to be recognized in the credits if you don't want to, but why not?" Tora shrugged. "I just don't want to." The director shrugged but smiled. He had gotten her to agree to do the part.

It was near 6 in the afternoon when Tora brought up the party. "Hey, Ren," she said from her seat in the back of the car, "Can I go somewhere with my friends this afternoon?" Ren looked up at her surprised. "Yeah, sure. Do you need me to drop you off anywhere?" "No, it's not that far from where your next set is," she lied. There was no way she would be caught dead being dropped off at a party by Ren Tsuruga. Especially not for a party at the company that Sho Fuwa belonged to. "I'll get a ride home later," she said as they arrived at Ren's filming set. "Ok," he said, not really paying to much attention.

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**I don't want to write anymore today. So, hopefully you liked it. Thanks to all who have reviewed.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks to all who have reviewed. Sorry for being off for so long. Moved from NV to WV and had trouble getting internet. Hope everyone is not too mad at me. This is from first person Sho's point-of-view. Hope you like it.**

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It was another of those dumb parties that my company threw to look impressive. Really, it was just pathetic. The only reason I was going was because my manager was worried about my recent behavior. Ok, so maybe I normally don't spend that much time on my computer, but it was for a good cause. My one and only real friend is a good cause, right? She's really nice and she understands me. The real me, not the one that the company created to impress my audience, but the one that I had only shared with one person before.

I sighed, shaking my head. Don't think about her, I told myself sternly, it only makes it worse. I almost rolled my eyes at myself. Right. Like that would work. I suppose that it was my own fault that this happened between us. I should have respected her more. If not at a woman, then at least as my friend. My closest friend, my _only_ friend. I groaned inwardly. Go away annoying thoughts about Kyoko.

I shook my head slightly and looked around the crammed room. Most of the people are girls from my company trying to get me to notice them. Several of them were clustered near me looking at me creepily. If they thought that would make me consider them as a potential girlfriend, they were seriously mistaken. Most of the few guys there were giving me glares, like it was my fault that their girlfriends liked me. I didn't want their girlfriends, other than as my fans. They could keep them.

I started to make my way through the crowd, nodding and smiling at the girls I passed. A few of them fell to the floor in a swoon and I winced inwardly as the girls behind them trampled them to get closer to me. One or two got nosebleeds and ran, red-faced, to the girls room. As I moved further through the room, my smile was more of a well-meaning grimace.

I slumped gratefully into a dark corner of the room. I could go back to my room now if I wanted. I 'mingled' enough to satisfy my manager that I wasn't antisocial or sick. Maybe 'KittehPrincess' would be on when I got to my computer. Yeah, talking to her should help me get over the crazy fans. With that plan in my head, I started to sneak along the wall towards the exit.

Just about when I reached the door, another group of girls came in. Two of the three screamed in delight. The third looked at them surprised and confused. "That's him! It's Sho! Oh, we got to see him in person," one of the ones who had screamed shouted at the third. Understanding swept across her face and I braced myself for the scream or physical assault I was sure was going to come.

Instead, she held her hand out to me. "Nice to meet you, Sho-san. My name is Tora." I stared at her for a while, dumbfounded. That was an odd thing for a girl to say to me. I slowly nodded and shook her still offered hand. "Nice to meet you," I managed to say. She smiled at me and nodded. Then she grabbed her two friends and dragged them further into the room. I winced as they, and some of the other girls, shouted that they wanted to touch 'Sho-sama' too.

I watched the girl who had shook my hand for a while before leaving. She was a rather pretty girl with blonde hair and blue eyes. She was tall too, which I knew bothered some guys. They thought it was uncool if a girl could look down at you or look you in the eyes. I never really thought about it, though. Height was a dumb thing to build a relationship around.

I shook my head to clear it of such stupid thoughts. I didn't want a girlfriend. Girlfriends were troublesome to have. Especially as a star. You could never be sure what they wanted. Did they want your popularity, or your money? Did they like you or the image that you built for the cameras? Did they want you for a friend or something more? I never did understand girls. Not even Kyoko.

Bad thoughts. Stop it. Don't go anywhere near her. I want to think about 'KittehPrincess'. Yeah. I'm escaping the dumb party to talk to her, if she's on. Oh, please let her be on. I really need someone to talk to or I'll go crazy. Maybe I could ask her about girl stuff. It would be embarrassing, but maybe she could help me get Kyoko back. Maybe I could bet my best friend back.

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**I really don't like writing in first person but it fit, so whatever. Hopefully you kind of like my Sho's perspective on everything. His relationship with Kyoko, himself, and his 'friend' KittehPrincess. Please don't hate me for taking so long to post and review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks to all who have reviewed. Actually, Sho thinks of Kyoko as something he owns. Maybe someone he loves. But for my ff it works better with the best friend idea. Brain deadness not helped by spontaneous deletion of my work. Sorry.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat!**

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**Tora drug a hand though her hair, bored. She hadn't heard from 'Rockstar' for several days. She had started filming for the sister part yesterday and it was more of a hassle than she remembered. She hadn't acted since she was little, when her father had asked the director to allow her to do a small part on one of his tv series. She didn't want a fuss to be made that she was back in the acting business since she really wasn't. That's why she didn't want to be acknowledged for the part.

She was currently sitting on the side of the set of Dark Moon. She watched as the main actress and Ren did a romantic scene. Kyoko walked over, standing next to Tora.

"How did you get involved in acting," Tora asked, curious. She and Ren had been around acting since they were little, but Kyoko seemed new to acting but not the 'I want to be an actress when I grow up' type of person.

"Well," Kyoko started, blushing, "When I first began, I was just doing it to get revenge on someone."

"Really," Tora asked, looking surprised, "What did they do?"

"He was my childhood friend and when he came to Tokyo, he asked me to come with him," Kyoko explained, still blushing, "I thought that he returned my feelings, since I had a crush on him. Instead, I worked like a maid for him and I over heard him talking to his manager about me one day. He said that I was a plain girl that he saw me as nothing more than a servant."

"That's terrible," Tora exclaimed, feeling angry for Kyoko, "What's his name? I'll tell Ren to go beat him up!"

Kyoko smiled sadly at Tora and shook her head. "His name is Sho Fuwa."

Tora stared at Kyoko, confused. "He seemed nice when I met him."

"When did you meet him," Kyoko asked, confused. If she had been with Ren, there was no way that he had seemed nice.

"Um, at a party," Tora said, looking at Ren to make sure he hadn't over heard what they were talking about.

Kyoko shrugged. "He was probably just pretending for his fans."

"Probably," Tora agreed, nodding.

Kyoko looked up when her make-up artist yelled for her to finish preparing for the next scene. She smiled at Tora and waved as she left to get ready.

-

Tora lay on her bed, bored. Ren had dropped her off at his apartment while he went to film an interview. She rolled onto her back and stared at her computer screen. She had nothing to do. Suddenly 'Rockstar' logged on. She sat up and quickly sent him a message, hoping he had time to talk.

KittehPrincess: Hey! Long time no see!  
Rockstar: Yeah, I haven't been on a lot lately.  
KittehPrincess: A lot of music practice?  
Rockstar: And other stuff, too.  
KittehPrincess: You want to talk about it?  
Rockstar: Not really. Don't want to push my problems onto someone else.  
KittehPrincess: That's what friends are for. Besides, it helps to talk about it.  
Rockstar: Maybe. I don't have time right now, but I'll tell you later. If I can.  
KittehPrincess: I hope we can talk more later when you have more time.  
Rockstar: Yeah. I've got to go. It's great talking to you again. I kind of missed it.  
KittehPrincess: Me too. See you, then.  
Rockstar: Yeah.

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**Are you sure I can't just wait with everyone else for it to update itself? Hopefully, the new format is easier to read and I'll be able to come up with something else to do with it. I've got an idea of where I want to get, but not how to get there.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry I haven't updated in a while, but I really am waiting for it to update on its own. That would be fun. I don't like doing work.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

Tora sat with Kyoko at the set of Dark Moon while Ren was on the set. They were talking animatedly about their plans for the weekend. Tora was planing on going to the ice rink with Ren for her birthday. Kyoko had to work but would stop by to help Tora bake a cake.

"Ren has your birthday off?" Kyoko asked looking over at him.

"Yeah, he said that he already got us rink passes for the day," Tora said excitedly, "I just love ice skating!"

"I wish I could see Ren skate," Kyoko said wistfully.

"Especially if he's still as bad as he used to be," Tora said giggling. Kyoko snickered at the idea of Ren falling on ice skates.

"You sure you don't want me to get you a present?" Kyoko asked worriedly.

"Yeah, I don't really need anything," Tora said shaking her head, "Besides, you're working to pay for school. I don't need to bother you for something like that."

"Kyoko-chan, we need you on set four," an assistant said running up to the two girls.

"Talk to you later Tora," Kyoko said as she ran to the designated set.

Tora sat back in her chair and watched Ren as he was ushered off to another set or to his dressing room. Tora wasn't sure which because she hadn't been paying too much attention. He walked away to another part of the set and Yashiro came to sit in Kyoko's empty chair.

"How do you think Ren is doing?" Yashiro asked curious as to Tora's opinion. Over the previous weeks, he had seen her work with Ren, acting as his sister, and knew that she must have some previous experience acting.

"He seems alright," she said watching the stage hands run across the set moving props, "I heard he had some trouble before I got here, though."

"Yeah," Yashiro said smiling at the memory of Ren's trouble, "He did hit a bit of a snag, but he figured it out."

"What was the problem?" Tora asked curious as to what could bother her brother to such an extent.

"He was having trouble portraying the scene where Katsuki is struggling to hide his feelings," Yashiro explained, watching to see Tora's reaction.

Tora snickered as she understood that he must have been confused about his own feelings towards Kyoko.

"He's such a ditz sometimes," she said laughing.

"Yeah," Yashiro agreed laughing too.

Later that evening, Tora was on her computer checking her e-mail when 'Rockstar' logged on.

Rockstar: Hey, how's it going?

KittehPrincess: I'm ok. Looking forward to going ice skating this weekend.

Rockstar: You going to the new place? The Glitter Rink?

KittehPrincess: Yeah, my brother is taking me for my birthday.

Rockstar: Maybe I'll see you there.

KittehPrincess: Maybe, maybe not. You're recording that day, right?

Rockstar: Yeah, but I might could get a few hours off.

KittehPrincess: That would be great! Do you think we will recognize each other?

Rockstar: It would almost be more fun if we met and didn't know it.

KittehPrincess: Maybe we already met and don't know it!

Rockstar: Maybe I'm really your brother!

KittehPrincess: Ew, no! No! NO!

Rockstar: Just kidding! I'm an only child, remember?

KittehPrincess: Yeah, I guess.

Rockstar: I'll talk to you more later. See you!

KittehPrincess: Ok. See you.

Sho smiled as he signed off. Quickly, he typed the ice rink's name into the browser search engine and clicked on their website. He bought tickets for the day of Tora's birthday and planned in his head how he was going to get out of working for the day. It shouldn't be that hard. He's a national star after all.

**As usual, Sho gets less screen time than Bakura. Oh, well. I don't really like Sho anyway.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Thanks to all who have reviewed.**

**Disclaimer: I DON'T own Skip Beat! So there!

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Tora sat in the car with her arms crossed angrily. She should have know this would happen. This always happened when her brother was involved.

"Tora," Ren said resignedly, "I already said I was sorry. It's not my fault that they suddenly need me to shoot a section of Dark Moon. Some of the actors who were supposed to be working today called in sick and Director Ogata doesn't want to waste the time they were going to use shooting."

Yashiro tried to curl up on himself to avoid being dragged into the siblings' argument. He felt partially guilty for letting Director Ogata ask Ren to shoot today.

"You could have said 'no'," Tora responded for the sixth time that morning.

"I was the only one who could film without the ones who called in sick. Most of the scenes that I have with them is done," Ren replied, starting to feel annoyed. It wasn't his fault that the actors all got food poisoning from the same restaurant.

"You still could have said 'no'. It's not like Director Ogata couldn't do with a break," Tora said, looking at Ren in the rear-view mirror.

"No, but he would feel let down," Ren replied, looking back at her.

Tora sighed as she looked out the window. When they passed the Glitter Rink, she got an idea.

"Stop!" she shouted, surprising Ren into complying.

Several cars behind them began honking, but Tora paid them no mind. She grabbed her bag and opened the car door.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Ren asked, confused.

"Skating," Tora replied. She shut the door and walked away to the Glitter Rink.

Tora reveled in the feeling of gliding across the ice. She loved skating more than anything. Gliding around a couple on a date, Tora looked at the other people on the rink. Most were couples, like the ones she had just avoided. A few were alone, like her.

While she was watching a dad with his kid, she almost ran into someone.

"I'm sorry," Tora said, blushing as she turned around.

Sho grinned at her, wearing a disguise. He had on a blue ball cap and red-tinted sunglasses.

"Careful there," he said, putting an hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, thanks," Tora said, smiling at him shyly.

"Hey, it's no problem," he said with a smile.

Tora's eyes widened as she recognized him. She opened her mouth to speak, but Sho covered her mouth with his hand.

"Please don't say anything, I'm in disguise," he said pleadingly.

Tora glared at him and moved his hand off her mouth.

"It's a really bad disguise. And I'm smart enough not to shout at the top of my lungs 'Oh My Gosh it's Sho Fuwa'," Tora said rolling her eyes. Even if he had hurt Kyoko, no one deserved the attack of fangirls.

"Well, I just didn't want you to alert everyone to the fact that I'm here," Sho said sulkily.

"I should just to be mean," Tora said threateningly.

"Don't!" Sho pleaded. He really wanted to stay long enough to find 'KittehPrincess". Even though he had no idea what she looked like.

"I won't. I said I'm not that stupid. If I did that, they'd mob me as much as you," Tora said, skating around Sho in a small circle.

"Yeah, you're right," Sho said, cheered slightly.

"So why are you here in disguise?" Tora asked curious. Why was Sho at an ice skating rink wearing a disguise?

"I'm sort of here to see someone," Sho said, slightly embarrassed. He didn't know why he was telling this to a stranger, but he couldn't help himself.

"Oh, well," Tora said, not sure whether or not to make fun of Sho. She decided not to. "Well, I hope you have fun with them," she said, shrugging and skating off.

Sho followed her. "Actually, I don't know who I'm meeting. I was sort of just hoping I'd recognize them when I saw them," he admitted.

"Well, I suppose I could help you," Tora relented. She thought that it was odd that he was meeting someone without knowing what they looked like, but she had half hoped to see 'Rockstar' today too. She didn't know what he looked like either, so she didn't have any room to make fun of Sho.

"Thanks," Sho said, smiling at Tora. He was glad that he could get some help with this. He felt foolish for going through the trouble of getting off then not being able to find 'KittehPrincess'.

"So what do you know about this person?" Tora asked, looking around at the other skaters. She wondered who Sho was supposed to be meeting up with. Probably that pretty girl over there with her little sister.

"Um, I know it's her birthday and she's coming with her brother," Sho said, thinking about what he knew. Most of the information he did know about 'KittehPrincess' probably wouldn't help them find here.

"Huh, that's odd. It's my birthday too," Tora said, smiling at Sho. She didn't mention that her brother had abandoned her today. Sho would probably want to know why and she didn't want to talk about it. Not with him.

"Cool. Congats," Sho said, skating in a wide circle around Tora. She laughed at him and skated opposite him.

"So, which do you think she is?" Tora asked, "There's a girl there with a guy older than her." She pointed at a girl approximately age twelve with a boy about fifteen years old.

"No, she's too young," Sho said, shaking his head, "The girl I'm looking for is about our age."

"How about that one?" Tora asked, pointing at a girl with a boy about the same age as her.

"I don't think so," Sho said as the girl kissed the boy and giggled.

"Hm, I don't know. Are you sure she's here?" Tora asked, looking at the other girls. None of them seemed to be with a brother either. Most of them were on dates.

"Pretty sure. Maybe she couldn't come though," Sho said depressed at the idea.

"Did she know you were coming?" Tora asked. She found it hard to believe that any girl would stand up Sho Fuwa.

"Sort of," Sho said, sighing and shaking his head. "She may show up and she might not. I'll just have to wait and see I guess," he said, looking around at the other girls again. They couldn't be 'KittehPrincess', could they? And how should he ask anyway? Just go up and say 'Hi. Are you 'KittehPrincess'?'. That was just ridiculous. Sho started to feel silly about the whole thing.

"Well, I'm here by myself for the afternoon anyway. Why don't you hang out with me and I can point out any possible girls who fit the bill?" Tora suggested, feeling a bit bad for Sho. Sure he was a jerk, but he didn't really deserve to be stuck by himself while he waited for this mystery girl, did he?

"Sounds cool," Sho said, smiling at Tora. He was glad he didn't have to look for 'KittehPrincess' by himself. After all, two heads are better than one, right?

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**You want to shout at them and say "Hey, the person you're looking for is right next to you!" don't you? It's so fun that they're so clueless. Sorry for being gone so long, but you know I hate doing any actual work.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry for being so lazy, you guys are awesome for trying to keep up with this story. Special thanks to StrawberriCat for dissing Sho when I can't. Man I hate that guy and yet I'm trying to make him a girlfriend. Hm...Go figure.**

**Thanks to all reviewers as usual. Love you guys. I always need a good kick to get going and you are usually good at providing it. Keep it up!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat! Or any of the characters.

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Sho sighed as he and Tora hadn't found 'KittehPrincess' and it was already night. Tora had 'helped' by joking with him and making fun of him. She wasn't like other girls, all of them clamoring for his attention. Instead, she treated him like any other person. Like Kyoko had, when they were still friends.

Sho missed Kyoko. She had been his best friend and sister for his whole life. Without her, he felt lonely. Maybe that was why he liked talking with 'KittehPrincess' whenever he could. Though she was different. There was something else about her that he felt was more that 'KittehPrincess' had. Tora was a bit like that too. She had something special.

Tora was happy that she had found someone to hang out with while she was there, even if it was Sho. He wasn't so bad when he was acting normal. Sho was even funny when he wanted to be. She found it hard to believe that he had been so cruel as to treat Kyoko like a slave when they had been friends for so long.

Tora sighed as she saw Yashiro come in, looking around the skating rink for her. "I have to go," she said, looking at Sho and shrugging.

"Maybe we'll see each other again sometime," Sho said, smiling at Tora.

"Yeah," Tora said, smiling back at him and nodding. She skated over to the exit and changed out of her skates into her shoes. Yashiro hurried over to her, looking tired and stressed.

"Are you alright? Who was that you were talking with?" Yashiro asked, hovering around Tora slightly.

"I'm fine. And who I talk with is none of your business," she replied, heading out to look for Ren's car.

"If anything happens to you Ren will throw a fit," Yashiro said, following after her and pointing out the car.

"Yes, I know," Tora sighed. She looked back at Yashiro, smiling slightly. "He's trying to be there for me, isn't he?" she asked.

"He is, though it's hard for him. For both of you really," Yashiro said, scratching the back of his head.

Tora nodded and got into the car. Ren was watching them with a confused look. Yashiro just shrugged to him, smiling to himself.

When Ren and Tora arrived back at Ren's apartment, Tora opened the door and was surprised to see Kyoko inside with a birthday cake.

"Kyoko," Tora said, smiling happily. She went and hugged Kyoko, happy that her friend had made her a cake.

Ren smiled at them, grabbing his present for Tora from the couch. "Here," he said, handing it to his sister when she was done hugging Kyoko.

Tora took the present, looking at it curiously before opening it.

"Oh my...Ren!" she exclaimed, smiling up at him. He had gotten her a computer tablet with software to make paintings and drawings on her laptop.

"Happy birthday Tora," Ren said, smiling at her. Tora hugged him tight, feeling so happy. It was practically a perfect day. If only she could have spent some time with 'Rockstar' too.

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**Hahaha! They still don't know who the other is yet! It's so funny!**

**Please keep poking me till I post! I promise I'll try harder if you do!  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry. This chapter really needed to be rewritten. Thanks to StrawberriCat for helping out by reading over and modifying my stupidity. Hugs and love to everyone who reads and reviews. Sorry for the confusion. Thanks to Songstress Of The Sea and Interfierce for reviewing the original chapter and thanks to ****Kira Tsumi, Alliethewolfgirl, and kisslovegoodbye for reviewing the previous chapter.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat.**

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**"Can you believe the President wanted us to take care of Mr. Kuu?" Kyoko asked. "Mr. Kuu played Katsuki from the original 'Dark Moon' drama! That's amazing, right Tora?"

"Yeah, it's really cool," Tora replied, giving her friend a somewhat forced cheerful smile. She already knew who Kuu was and why he was coming, so it was kind of hard for her to be as excited and wonder like Kyoko. After all, her dad had already sent an e-mail to her letting her know that he was coming to see her and Ren.

"Hey, Tora?" Kyoko asked, breaking Tora's line of thought.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"I understand why the President asked me to take care of him, but why you?" Kyoko said, thinking about it. Tora may show up to rehearsals with Ren, but she wasn't even part of the company. So, why have her do such a job?

Tora shrugged, pretending that she didn't know exactly why. "Maybe the President thought it would be best for you to have some help," Tora suggested. "I've heard he can be a handful to work with..." she trailed off. Tora couldn't tell Kyoko what to expect, but she could give subtle hints.

"Maybe in case he doesn't speak Japanese anymore. It would be bad if I insulted him accidentally by not knowing enough English," Kyoko said, worrying slightly. Tora had to stop herself from giving her an incredulous look. Kyoko sometimes gave the weirdest reasoning when she worried.

"Don't worry about that. Kuu worked with Japanese in his movies while in Japan. Plus he was raised in Japan and has Japanese heredity," Tora stated, shaking her head. Kyoko nodded, biting her lip nervously.

"I hope that it'll work out," Kyoko said, fidgeting slightly.

"Oh, I think Kuu will like you just fine," Tora said, grinning as she thought of how her dad would receive Kyoko. He would more than approve of Kyoko and Ren, and probably would try give them relationship advice. Although, he would want to make sure Ren didn't hurt her. Her dad was just weird like that.

About a week later, Kyoko and Tora were waiting for Kuu at the airport. Tora had made the President and Kuu agree to have Kuu treat her the same as Kyoko and pretend to be mean. She sighed and hoped that Kyoko was up for the challenge they had created. Basically, dealing with her dad when he was a total pain. Like Ren, he could be stubborn when he wanted to be, and unfortunately, that was most of the time. It was going to be tough for her to let Kyoko handle the issue rather than taking over and defending her.

Kyoko nudged Tora as Kuu walked in, waving to his fans and smiling brilliantly to them. Tora was used to this, having to live with it all her life. Kyoko, on the other hand, was rather surprised. She had never seen such behavior; She didn't even think that Ren and Sho's fans combined could be like this.

When Kuu arrived in front of the two girls, Kyoko and Tora bowed politely to him as Kyoko explained that they were going to take him to the hotel. Kuu glared at them in contempt, in an unnerving and rude way. Tora could see the mischievous look in his eyes, though. She had seen it whenever he pretended to scold her when she was younger. Kyoko, however, was uncertain about what was happening, trying to find out what she had done wrong as he complained in English during the whole ride.

Kyoko and Tora followed Kuu up to the hotel room, carrying his things as he continued to fuss about the poor reception for him. Tora fought not to giggle since this was actually more than he got at many places. Usually Kuu was only given a room for him and he took either Tora or her mother with him when he needed someone to help him out. Often though, he just worked on his own and took care of himself. This whole thing was just a set up for Kyoko to help her become a better actress. If only Kyoko was aware of that.

Kuu settled down on the couch while Kyoko and Tora cooked dinner.

"Do you think Mr. Kuu is always like this?" Kyoko asked in a quiet voice. It would be horrible if Mr. Kuu overheard. Tora shrugged, pretending she didn't know either.

"Like I said before, I've heard he's hard to work with," Tora replied, trying not to break character. It was hard not to relent and tell her friend what she knew about the situation. It might not be fair to Kyoko, but life wasn't really fair to anyone.

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**So again, thanks to StrawberriCat for all her help. Hope you like it and stick around for the next chapter.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Sorry for the delay. For those of you that didn't notice, the last chapter was rewritten so that it makes more sense. Thanks again to StrawberriCat for her help on both this chapter and the last.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Some days I wish I didn't own this story, but I guess I'd be ticked off if someone else was doing it and messing up my idea**

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Tora could clearly remember what acting had been like when she was little.

When she was small, Kuu took her to work with him. She felt proud of him for being her dad. He wanted her to work with him and she did because he was her dad. It made her happy that he wanted her to work with him. The parts were not hard, so she didn't have to try too hard. But once she started having parts on her own, she couldn't understand why her dad left her.

Tora had only cared about acting because her dad was there with her. It was an opportunity for her to be with her dad. When he left her all alone on the set, she started crying. They didn't know why and thought she had stage fright but really she was upset because her dad had left her. She got yelled at by the director but she didn't care. As far as she could tell, her dad had abandoned her.

She didn't talk to the others on the set for the rest of the month. They were strangers to her, and her mom had told her not to talk to strangers. Her young mind couldn't understand the concept of making a movie. It made her self conscious to know that everything she was doing was being recorded so she was more cautious about her words and actions.

Even when she was older, she was uncomfortable with cameras. The idea that anyone could have records of everything she did made her depressed. She ended up crying at the sign of cameras around her because she was so scared and depressed. It made her parents sad but she couldn't help it. The idea of anyone being able to see her through the camera and know what she was doing kind of scared her. She didn't really understand that a person would need to take the film out and develop it in order to actually see it.

Her parents finally resigned to stop pushing her into the field of acting. Tora had calmed down and slowly returned to her normal self. The young was relieved that she wouldn't be left alone with strangers. Until, her brother left and suddenly it felt like the smothering loneliness was back.

With Kuon gone, her whole world was shattered. He was the only one who understood why she felt the way she did. Kuon knew that she was more unsure of herself rather than being camera shy. The expectations of being a child of Kuu was smothering, and her brother had gone through this himself. Their parent's reputation had made them famous in a way. And, whether it was their peers, paparazzi, or other 'real' celebrities, everyone wanted to know them. But it was for the sake of a chance meeting with their parents, and not because truly wanted to get to know the children. And suddenly he was just gone with no explanation to the little sister that depended on him more than anything.

Tora refused to talk to anyone. Even though her mom cried because Kuon was gone she chose not to ask about it. It was too painful and too real to actually consider that her brother could be gone forever. If they didn't talk about it, then there was a chance that it wouldn't be true. For years she lived with this internal torment, willing herself to forget that she had a big brother. Tora went along with her normal routine-school, friends, growing-up as a child of Kuu- and only when she was alone did she allow herself to grieve for the brother that could have either died or abandoned her.

To her parents and her friends, she was still Tora. She was still a young girl growing up and had made an effort to not let the toll of her sadness be known. But, she supposed that her parents HAD noticed that she wasn't the same girl. It had been years later when they decided to reveal the truth to her; Kuon was in Japan. He was a famous actor that was adored by his fans and the press. However, when Tora searched online for 'Ren Tsuruga' she had expected to see her brother, not this man. Her beloved Kuon Hizuri was now Ren Tsuruga, a man that looked TOO charming.

In the end she decided it didn't matter. She sure didn't look the same from the last moment they had seen each other. With a conviction that awed her parents, Tora demanded to see her brother. She was not going to take no for an answer. If her parents refused then she would shamelessly beg for this mercy, using guilt trips as her ultimate weapon. There were many late or forgotten birthdays, or even art shows, that were not in her parent's favor.

Her parents were uneasy at first, but finally relented. They had called up President Lori, and made many emotional and difficult calls to convince Ren Tsuruga to take in his 'cousin'. Ren sounded very reluctant but agreed. He hoped that they understood it was because he was afraid, than actually not wanting to see her. In retrospect, he was filled with happiness of being able to see her again. The girl that had clung onto him when she wanted attention and was afraid of storms at night.

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**Next chapter should be up kind of soon since I've got it written. Somewhere...  
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	13. Chapter 13

**Oh bother. Finals will be coming up next week and I feel horrible. Thanks to IsabelleWalker, Princess3975, Athena of wisdom, and Interficere for their reviews. And of course StrawberriCat for making sure that it isn't horrible or muddled.**

**This is somewhat of a continuation/different perspective of what happened in the last chapter.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Certainly not Skip Beat!  
**

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Tora sighed softly as she went back to meet with her father. Kyoko was working this afternoon, leaving her alone to deal with Kuu. Not that Tora was really reluctant to spend time alone with her father, but she still felt bad about the act that they were using to trick Kyoko. She could only hope that the President's plan went well or Kyoko would be extremely upset and maybe broken by the time that they finished.

Kuu waited nervously for Tora, anxious about seeing his daughter again. He and her mother had agreed to let her to to see Kuon, but they hadn't expected her to still be so reluctant to enter into the acting field. Julia and he were proud of their daughter, but they did wish she would give acting a try again. Her experiences with the occupation before were not particularly pleasant, but they weren't average either. He sighed as he remembered why Tora said she didn't want to act anymore.

Tora was only six when she had her fist role in a movie in which Kuu wasn't also participating. Kuu was so proud, though he'd never tell her the director had chosen her as a favor to him. His daughter would proved to be as good as the rest of their family, he was sure. She was not a main character, but that was not a problem. Even so, Tora would shine. She had proven herself capable of working with her father in other small roles; acting as an extra who needed to be a small child. Her skills weren't really used, mostly she just read, drew, played, or sang in a group of other children needed for the scene. Now she would need to remember her lines and act with adults other than her father and his friends.

In the first scene that she was shooting, Tora forgot her lines and started crying. The director wasn't used to working with children and he yelled at her till she stopped. Kuu was busy on another set, having left his daughter in the care of those working with her and trusting them to watch out for her. He didn't know till he came to pick her up that she was completely incapable of talking to anyone on the set and wouldn't talk to anyone for almost a month. It hurt him that she had been scared and he hadn't been there to keep her from being upset, but he couldn't understand why she was having problems with it. It never occurred to him that she simply had stage fright without him around.

Even in the following years, Tora continued to show signs that she was uncomfortable talking in front of large groups. When she was eight, she started crying at the sign of any camera. It was heartbreaking to Kuu and Julia to watch their daughter fall to pieces under the pressure, so they stopped trying to get her to act any more. They had already seen how badly it had broken Kuon and they were afraid the same thing would happen to her if they continued. Tora was almost fine after that, only having a few breakdowns when asked for a photo or autograph. Until her brother disappeared.

When Kuon left, Tora completely shut everyone out for a while. She didn't talk to her parents or anyone, though she seemed to understand when they talked to her. Julia cried for months that their son was gone and Kuu was hardly far from doing the same. Though eventually they healed enough to continue with their lives, trying to work through the pain that their choices had caused. It wasn't till Tora was old enough that Kuu thought she was ready to know what had happened to her brother. He told her that Kuon had left for Japan and had become Ren Tsuruga. She had looked shocked and sad before seeming determined. He was surprised that she asked to see her brother, so much that he had agreed without thinking about it.

Kuu sighed sadly, shaking his head clear. Such thoughts of the past were too sad for him to think of now. He needed to focus on the future of his family. His own hopes were that he could reconcile with his son and daughter, making sure to do his best to make them happy no matter what.

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**I'll write up the next chapter today and get it proof-read. It'll be up next time I feel like getting on here. ^w^  
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